Kindred in Christ,

Pentecost Sunday is certainly the noisiest of all Christian holy days—a party, the “birthday of the Church.” We celebrate with banners, red balloons, and cake. We hear rushing wind, tongues of fire, and cacophonous crowds. The polyglot celebration of Acts 2 reminds us that God sent all humanity a gift—the Spirit with its promise of passion, diversity, and creativity.

Yet, it is not an exclusive party. With all that wind and noise, and hazardous pyrotechnics of the Spirit, the text tells us that the Apostles were moved outdoors to begin their multi-lingual proclamation. While they began indoors, the Spirit pushes them outdoors to connect with new people in new ways. Rather than starting outdoors and being moved inside a temple, the Church is born when a group is empowered to put themselves out there in a new way.

As the world begins to slowly and responsibly open up and we find ourselves meeting more people in person, I wonder what it would look like to trust the Spirit’s power of creating new and life-giving connections with others. As we wander deeper into the wilderness as a faith community and begin to do outreach events, how might the Spirit be inspiring you with Pentecostal imagination for new connections to happen?

Join us this Sunday, as we celebrate Pentecost and continue in our worship series, Lessons from the Wilderness. I hope to see you on Facebook Live!

Alongside you,

-Rev. Paul Ortiz